The Piano Boy
by VioletIsabelleLovett
Summary: Two boys will meet for the first time during the summer of 1955, when the Winchester family moves in next door to the Novaks. Their story begins on a rainy June evening, and evolves into the inevitable suffering that life unfolds for the weary-hearted. They live and they face the world as one, during the height of the Cold War and the raging mid-20th century. (Eventual Sam/Lucifer)
1. Chapter 1

"_He took a step, and then felt tired_

_He said, 'I'll rest a little while'_

_But when he tried to walk again_

_He wasn't a child"_

- Blue Lips, Regina Spektor

____ Chapter One_

**June, 1955**

It was the summer of 1955 that the Winchesters moved in next-door to the Novaks, a family of five at the end of the street. It was raining that day, but that didn't stop the youngest of the Novak brothers from hiding behind the large oak tree to spy on the new family as they loaded their things off the moving truck, the wide yards creating just enough distance so that he would not be spotted from up above. With eyes wide open, the suspicious boy peered at the small family, made up of two young boys, and a father. The rain made the air humid and muggy, but neither of the boys seemed to mind.

The younger of the two brothers was about his age, roughly eight or nine years old. As the rain poured down, soaking everyone's clothes, Lucifer watched the older of the two help his father with several heavier boxes. The younger was lifting a large chair above his head, struggling with the weight as he hauled it into the house. Lucifer stayed hidden behind the large oak, making sure to keep out of sight as he watched them. The rain made his clothes cling to his skin, making him cold and shivery. Only his brother Michael was at home- his father was out, somewhere, along with the rest of his brothers, and Lucifer didn't have to worry about getting yelled at for being outside in the rain.

He didn't make a move to introduce himself, or to even say hello to the family. After a little while, Lucifer climbed to the top of the tree to ensure he wouldn't be seen, peering down at them between the leaves. The rain made the tree-bark wet and slippery, and already Lucifer had to catch himself to make sure he didn't go toppling out of the branch he perched himself on. While not very high off the ground, Lucifer really had no intention of making a fool of himself.

"Dean, help your brother with the chairs," their father said, having to shout to be heard over the rain. The older boy quickly ran inside the moving truck, helping his little brother carry out several of the chairs into the house. Roughly about four or five years older than his brother, Dean was quick to help him with the heavier boxes, as their father helped the movers bring in the couch. Twice, Dean caught his little brother when he tripped over a crack in the patio, which brought a laugh out of both of them.

Lucifer watched the younger brother with envy.

He leaned forward from his place above the ground, craning his neck to get a better look, when he realized too late that he leaned too far. That's when his foot slipped. With a startled gasp, his feet flew out from under him, sending him thudding to the ground and into the wet grass, just next to the Winchester's gravel driveway. He laid there, uttering a groan of pain. Nothing was broken, although it felt like every bone in his body had cracked wide open. It just _hurt_. He had landed on his side, his face buried in the wet grass.

Before he could scramble to his feet, he heard footsteps rushing over to him, before a figure knelt down beside him. When Lucifer looked up, he was looking directly into a pair of bright green eyes, wide with surprise and concern. He had light, short brown hair that stuck to the sides of his face in the rain. With a tanned, lightly freckled face, Lucifer realized with dismay that he was looking directly into the face of the younger Winchester.

"You okay?" he asked. Lucifer winced, his instincts immediately telling him to draw away from the boy as he struggled to his feet.

"Here, I can-" the boy began, offering a hand to help. Lucifer shook his head, groaning again as he stood. No, nothing was broken. Even if something had been, he didn't care. He didn't want to face the humiliation of having to be helped by a stranger. His face flushed with embarrassment. Not only had he fallen out of a tree, they had probably been figuring out that he had been spying on them for the past twenty minutes. Lucifer didn't accept the hand.

"Uh...I'm Sam, by the way," the younger boy said nervously, still concerned that the boy in front of him may have broken something when he fell. Lucifer only looked at him, staying silent.

"Sam!" Dean yelled over the rain, that was only pouring down harder. He didn't notice that Sam was crouched over the strange boy, dressed in a olive-green t-shirt and jeans that were too big, now soaked and muddy from being outside.

"What are you doing over there?" he yelled. Sam opened his mouth to tell Dean about Lucifer, but the boy had already taken off, running at full speed across the wide yard to his house before Sam could reply.

Sam frowned, rejoining his brother in unloading the rest of the van without another word.

"Nothing," he said. "That kid was...I don't know." Dean snickered, watching the kid run inside.

"He seems real friendly," he said sarcastically. "Come on. Dad needs help with the last couple of boxes."

Sam nodded, sparing the house one, last glance, before following his older brother back inside the van.

It was 5:00 pm.

The rain had, finally, let up by the next day, allowing Sam Winchester to explore his new neighborhood after helping his brother and father unpack the few boxes that they had. Dean was happiest about the size of the yard they had, figuring he and his dad would finally have a place to play football when his dad had a day off. They had eaten dinner together as a family the night they moved on, a rare occurrence that they immensely appreciated, even if their father was grim and mostly silent as usual.

Promising not to go too far, Sam left his house in a hurry after helping unpack, standing outside on the sidewalk, still wet from the night before. A few people were outside- a woman with her dog, and several older boys on skateboards. Faintly, from somebody's open window, he heard the sound of a record player, some lively Elvis tune, drifting from the windows. It was quiet, he realized. Not that his old house in Lawrence, Kansas was much busier.

Sam didn't mind the silence. He had grown up in a quiet house, despite all the moving that they did over the years. When Dean wasn't watching cartoons or listening to his record player that used to belong to their mother, it was relatively peaceful in the Winchester home.

He walked around to the back of his house, spotting the old oak tree where the strange boy had fallen from the evening before. Sam's house and the boy's were the only two houses in the cul-de-sac at the very end of a long street, separated by a large, spacious yard with the single oak tree that served as the divider of the two properties. He would have to climb it himself one of these days, he thought to himself.

If they didn't move again before he got the chance to

As he walked closer to the tree, he noticed something laying at the base of the trunk, almost hidden by the fallen leaves and branches. Jogging over to take a closer look, he saw that it was a necklace, a simple, thin leather strip with a black music-note pendant hanging off the end, still slick from the rain from the night before. Sam picked it up, studying it closely. It felt like it was made out of marble or some sort of stone. It was very simple-looking, and the pendant was relatively big. He realized it may have belonged to the kid that fell out of the tree the night before.

_It probably flew off when he fell out of the tree,_ he thought. _I should give it back..._

Truthfully, Sam was a bit intimidated by the boy, even if he couldn't place his finger on why. Still, he wanted to find out more about him. Or at least get a chance to see what he was like. Even if he was a bit weird, Sam was still relieved to find that there was at least one boy his age in the neighborhood. If they supposedly were finally settling down in this house for good, Sam wanted to have at least one friend before school started in the fall.

The boy's house wasn't much unlike Sam's. He hesitantly walked up to their door, giving the doorbell one ring. After a moment or so, a much older boy answered the door, definitely not the one that Sam had seen yesterday. This boy looked like he was in high school, with wavy brown hair and dark brown eyes, as opposed to the other, smalling blonde kid from last night.

"Hey you're one of the Winchester kids!" he exclaimed, a smile spreading across his face.

"Hi," Sam said shyly, holding out the necklace in his hand. "I have… this… I think it's your brother's or something…I found it outside."

"Ah, that's Lucifer's alright…" He took the necklace, examining it with a frown. "He was tearing the whole house apart looking for this old thing, but for whatever reason never bothered to check outside. Literally, the kid is utterly possessive of this necklace. Used to belong to our mom. Come on in, I'll tell him you're here."

"Thanks. He'll be glad to have it back...damn kid never goes anywhere without this thing. I'm Michael, by the way. Lucifer is my brother. Have you guys met already?"

Sam winced. "Um...sort of," he said slowly. "It was raining. He fell out of the tree outside..and sort of ran back here. I never got a chance to say hi to him."

"Ha. Can't say I'm surprised. If he's not holed up away in his room, he's usually up there watching everyone walk around like a creep."

Michael held the door open for Sam to come in. Nervously, Sam walked through the doorway into their kitchen, small and finished with blue tile just as his was. The dark red curtains hung from the windowsill, the ceiling fan equipped with several lights that gave off a soft light. Michael walked into the adjoining room, a small living room with two couches and a small, black-and-white TV set. The antennas looked bent, as if someone had been tampering with them. Sam followed Michael into the living room hesitantly.

Faintly, Sam heard music coming from the upstairs room, like someone was playing on a piano. The notes were set in a slightly off-tune pattern, as if there was somebody trying to learn a song by ear. But the melody was undoubtedly original, a faint, haunting tune that caught Sam's attention almost immediately. Sam turned his head, curious. Michael just seemed irritated.

"Banging on that thing again…" he grumbled. "Luce!" he yelled up the stairs. "The kid next door found your necklace…"

The piano music came to an abrupt stop, the sound of hurried footsteps coming from upstairs. Almost at once, the boy Sam noticed from the night before came hurrying down the staircase. When he saw Sam, he froze, a panicked expression on his face. Michael tossed him his necklace.

"Here. Now you can stop freaking out about it so much."

Lucifer looked between his brother and Sam when he caught it. Sam raised a hand in hello, giving him a small, uneasy smile.

_What is with this guy?_ Sam thought to himself. _Why does he look like he's so freaked out over everything?_

"Where did you find it?" Lucifer asked, looking up at him as he quickly slipped the necklace around his neck.

"Under the tree. Where you, uh, fell."

"You always fall out of that thing. Dad told you not to climb it anymore if you're gonna crack your skull open every time you go outside," Michael snickered as he walked into the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of coke from the fridge.

"Shut up," Lucifer grumbled, giving his brother a dirty look. Sam laughed again, but Lucifer just looked annoyed and embarrassed.

"Go outside. You know dad won't be happy if he knew you shut yourself away up there all day again. Go show the new guy around the neighborhood for a little," Michael said from the kitchen. Lucifer shook his head.

"_Michael-" _Lucifer began to protest, but his brother wouldn't hear of it.

"Be nice!" he warned, frowning at him. He finally walked upstairs, leaving the two boys alone in the living room.

Sam grimaced, suddenly feeling awkward.

"Brothers, huh?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head. Lucifer shook his head.

"I have four of them," he grumbled. "I guess I could show you where the school is. It's right down the street...here, just follow me."

Sam followed him out of the house. He noticed that Lucifer was very quiet. Even when frustrated with his brother, he had a softness to his voice that was rare for his age.

"Four brothers?" Sam asked. Lucifer nodded as they walked across the grass and onto the sidewalk. He was trying his best to make conversation, seeing as they didn't exactly seem to meet on purpose. Lucifer was clearly unhappy about being around Sam. Probably still embarrassed about last night, he figured.

"Yep," he said, hopping off the sidewalk and into the street. "Gabriel is my younger brother. He's four. He was asleep upstairs when you came in. Raphael is away at college, Castiel is out with a friend, ...and you met Michael." Lucifer shrugged, still not looking at Sam as they began walking down the sidewalk.

"My dad's at work. He usually isn't home much."

Sam nodded. "My dad works a lot too. I don't see him a whole lot either...Dean usually helps me make dinner and stuff. But I can't imagine having more than one brother. I'd probably go crazy!"

Lucifer laughed a little, finally lifting his head to look at the other boy. He kept his distance, as if Sam were a wounded animal about to bite him. As they walked down the street, the familiar sound of Elvis drifting through an open window.

"The town's pretty quiet," Lucifer said as they walked down the road. "The music is coming from Pamela's house. She likes Elvis. It's pretty much all she ever plays. Michael thinks she's crazy, but I think she's really nice." He seemed more like he was talking to himself than to Sam.

"Was that you playing the piano inside?" Sam asked suddenly. Lucifer shrugged.

"Yeah I guess," he said, walking a little ahead of Sam. He remained quiet. The two of them walked down the street, turning a corner that lead to the main street. Several tiny shops lined the road, a diner sitting on the corner. This part of town was busier, Sam realized, but it was still so quiet compared to Lawrence, Kansas.

"So...you play piano?" Sam asked, trying to get to know this boy at least a little bit better. Lucifer only shrugged again, seemingly avoiding the question.

"I've never had lessons," he said after a little while. They passed a bakery as several cars zipped down the street. Sam wondered when they'd reach the school. It didn't start until early September, but he'd like to at least know what it looked like before it started. Several older boys stood by the curb, smoking cigarettes and talking loudly as several cars rolled down the street.

"But I still like to play." He curled his hand around the music note pendant hanging around his chest absently. Sam grimaced. Lucifer suddenly looked really uncomfortable, as if something were troubling him. He decided to drop the subject of music all together.

"The school is up here," he said quickly. "If you take a right and follow the street all the way down, the school is on the left. I have to go, okay? Nice talking to you."

He said this all very fast. Before Sam could utter another word, Lucifer took off in the opposite direction, running as fast as he could back towards his house before Sam could say anything else. Sam watched him go, wondering what he had said wrong to cause him to act so strangely.

Lucifer, Sam decided, was the weirdest kid he had ever met.

It took him almost an hour to find his house again, even though Lucifer and Sam hadn't walked all that far. He never did bother to find the school- he'd see it later. It was getting late, and he wanted to be home before Dean started freaking out. He swore as he past Lucifer's house that someone was watching him from the window, but when he looked around to see if anyone was there, the curtains were closed.

"Where were you all day?" Dean asked through a mouthful of green beans at dinner that night. Sam shrugged, looking down at his food. Their dad wasn't at dinner that night, which wasn't all that unusual for the two brothers. Their father typically left them things to cook on the stove, before heading off to work that night.

"That kid that lives next door showed me around. Lucifer. But he's really weird...I don't think he likes me very much."

Dean laughed. "He's probably afraid of you or something. I dunno."

"He has like, four brothers or something. I tried to get to know him better, but he barely talks at all."

"He's probably some creeper psycho anyway," Dean said, swallowing his entire bowl of mashed potatoes in two bites. "All the quiet ones are, you know."

"I guess that's why you never shut up?"

Dean threw the remainder of his green beans in Sam's hair.

That night, Sam slept with his window open, the breeze cooling off his muggy room. It was the first time in nine years that he had a room to himself, one that he didn't have to share with his older brother. While the room felt empty without another ebd beside his, Sam loved having the freedom. Nearly asleep, he was about to drift off when he heard a strange, melodic tune coming from somewhere outside.

Blinking in surprise, Sam hurried to his window, peering out into the night to find the source of the sound. It was clear that somebody was playing the piano, but it was unlike anything Sam had ever heard. It took him almost two minutes to realize the music was coming from Lucifer's house. Only one window of his house was open, one that was almost directly across from Sam's on the second floor.

There was no mistaking it- somebody was playing the piano. The melody was soft and quiet, but still sounded dark and threatening, as if something insidious were drawing nearer to the house in the dead of night. Sam listened, amazed. It was beautiful.

As he watched, he saw the light click on in the room and all at once, angry voices sounded from the house. Sam couldn't make out any words, although it was clear that somebody was shouting. The music stopped abruptly, right in the middle of a chord. Briefly, he heard a loud thump, as if something heavy had fallen, before silence descended over the neighborhood. Amazed, Sam left his window open in case he would hear it again, but no sound came from the house for the rest of the night. When he awoke the next morning, Dean said he hadn't heard anything, even though his window had been open as well.

Sam figured it must have been a dream.

_To be continued._


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey, I'm sorry if the formatting is all off- has been really weird lately. I'm posting stuff on Archive of Our Own mostly, where it's a little easier to format things. I have the first two chapters of this up on there already, but if this gets too irritating, I might just stick to keeping it on there. **

**July, 1955**

It had been several weeks since Sam had seen any sign of Lucifer since the awkward day that they had walked around town. Since then, the Winchesters had settled into their new home, and life went on as usual for the tiny family. Dean was out almost constantly, especially when their father wasn't home. Sam had no idea where he went, although he figured Dean probably made at least a billion friends by now. The older Winchester was always better at meeting people than Sam- Sam never really understood it. At thirteen years old, Dean was like some sort of movie star wherever he went, and even kissed his first girl when he was only eleven. Dean had told his brother it was like kissing a really wet wall.

Dean was the kind of guy who kissed girls a lot. But whenever Sam asked him about what kissing girls was like, Dean always made a face and shook his head.

"You kiss girls to be able to say that you kiss girls," he told his little brother. "Not because it's fun. Everyone expects you to have kissed girls by the time you're my age, so you do it. But I'm telling you: it's super nasty."

Sam didn't ask again.

Since there were no girls to kiss in his spare time, Sam was really bored. He often took walks by himself around town, hoping to catch sight of Lucifer at all and try to become friends again. Considering they were neighbors, Lucifer did a pretty good job at avoiding Sam wherever he went. He frequently saw Lucifer's other brothers that he had mentioned before. Once, Sam had even seen the youngest of the five, Gabriel, running around the yard with who Sam assumed was Castiel. Sam had waved hello once or twice, but neither brother seemed to notice them. Gabriel, who had light brown hair, was running around from Castiel who would occasionally laugh and try to throw handfuls of leaves at him. Sometimes Michael would come outside and work on the car, an old blue jalopy that looked like it had been built in the '30's. But Sam never once saw any sign of their father, or any sign of Lucifer in the next couple of weeks that followed.

Dean made him run to the grocery store with the money their father had left them, saying he was busy that day. When Sam asked him what he was doing, Dean thumped him on the forehead, saying it was none of his business. He had made friends already, Sam knew that much, but was still irritated that Dean was making him do all the shopping. The list was milk, bread, and more spaghetti. Their father was supposed to be home by tonight, Sam realized. The thought made him smile.

The small grocery store wasn't too far away from their house. Sam had remembered passing it during his time with Lucifer, next to the diner that stood on the corner. As he walked down the sidewalk, the familiar Elvis music drifted through Pamela's open window, several houses down the street from the Novaks and the Winchesters. Elvis, who was insanely popular nowadays, was practically all Sam ever heard. Dean hated the guy. If you didn't hear Elvis playing on the radio, it was "Rock Around the Clock", which somehow managed to play on every _other_ radio station.

"Hello!" a woman's voice called out from the doorway, just as Sam was about to pass the house entirely. He turned, watching as a black-haired woman came walking out of the doorway with a bright smile on her face. She was wearing a silky black dress, which almost looked too formal to be wearing around the house. Her hair was loosely pinned up into a bun, locks of hair spilling out and around her face. She gave Sam a bright smile, waving enthusiastically to him as if she had known him for quite some time. He record player continued to drift through the open window, "You're a Heartbreaker" sounding in the quiet of the street. Giving her a shy smile, Sam waved in return, tucking the grocery list into his pocket.

"You must be new here!" she said brightly, walking out bare-footed onto the sidewalk. She offered her hand to shake, which Sam accepted. Her house was small, a white-picket fence bordering her property with grass that looked kept and well-mowed.

"You're that little family of three, right?"

Sam nodded, shrugging a little. "Yeah. I'm Sam."

"Pamela. Nice to meet you sweetheart. Goodness, it's about time that Lucifer boy had a playmate other than those rowdy brothers of his...I feel sorry for the poor boy sometimes," she said with a sigh, chuckling a little.

"I met him already...he, um, well he's a little…"

Pamela's expression softened, a small, sad smile spreading across her face in understanding.

"A little odd?"

Sam winced, nodding quickly in agreement. He didn't really know what to say. He felt out of place criticizing him when he barely knew anything about him, but he _was_ definitely stranger than most. It was intriguing, in a way, and made Sam want to learn more about him...even if Lucifer wasn't too keen on learning anything more about Sam.

"Hey now. You look like you must be getting hot. Why don't you come inside and I'll fix you a little something to drink?"

It _was_ really hot outside. In the mid-day of July, Sam felt like he was already drowning in his own sweat. He followed her inside, wondering how she knew Lucifer so well. He vaguely remembered that Lucifer knew her- and that his brother thought she was strange.

Her house was like entering some kind of fortune teller's tent at a carnival. Everything was draped in oddly colored curtains and sequence, with strange statues and figures decorating the coffee table and kitchenware cabinets. Surprised, Sam looked around in wonder. Her kitchen was almost exactly the same, except the color scheme was mostly yellow and orange, with statues settled on the windowsills and on top of the cabinets. Pamela laughed a little at Sam's reaction.

"All of this garb belonged to my Papa. He gave it to me and my husband before he died, so I just kept this swell little house to myself." She brought the pitcher of lemonade out, pouring Sam a glass with ice. He accepted it gratefully.

"Aw shucks," he said, smiling shyly at her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, darling. You know...I'm glad you met that Lucifer boy. I really am. I feel like you two would be good pals."

Sam frowned and shook his head, downing his glass in two gulps.

"He doesn't want to be my friend," he said. "I tried talking to him, but he didn't want to have anything to do with me!"

Pamela sighed, putting the pitcher back into the fridge. "I know," she said quietly. "I just feel so sorry for the poor boy. You know his father is never home. I don't know where he goes off to, or what he's doing, but he leaves all of those boys alone in the house. The oldest one is away at college, but they have a four year old boy to look after! Gorgeous little child, always with so much energy...but they gotta look after each other all on their own. And Lucifer? Well, he withdraws in on himself. Stays on his piano all day and all night. I've only ever heard him play once…" She trailed off, shaking her head a little.

"Nothing wrong with a quiet kid. But he's almost too quiet, if you know what I mean."

"I tried to ask him about playing the piano. His brother Michael let me inside and I heard him playing...and a few weeks ago I thought I heard something at night, but I wasn't sure. It was really good though."

Pamela just shook her head again. "The boy is a rightful genius. He's gonna be fantastic one day. But he's a dark boy, you know? Doesn't like other kids. I'm the only one he ever talks to, and that's when I'm lucky."

Sam nodded, his brow furrowing. "Why is he like that?"

She shrugged. "Don't know. He just doesn't get along well with others. Hides away most of the day...the only time I ever see him outside is with his little brother, Gabriel. His little brother is the only one I ever see him smile with…" She smiled a little herself at the thought. "He loves him more than anything. That, he told me himself. Nothing can separate Lucifer from his little brother Gabriel, I'll tell you that right now!" She laughed wholeheartedly, but it sounded more like a cackle to Sam. He was beginning to realize why Lucifer got along with her so well- they were both a little odd.

"But anyway, how are you and your family settling in, honey?"

Sam told her about his first night moving in, and how he had met Lucifer when he tumbled out of the tree, which brought another laugh out of Pamela as she turned off her record player to switch on the radio. Overall things had been well. The town was quiet and there wasn't much to do, but Sam didn't mind too much.

"I think I saw your brother with Castiel- he's about thirteen or fourteen, isn't he? They seem to get along real good."

Sam told her he had barely seen his brother for the week that he had moved in.

"Well, you know how teenage boys are!" she laughed. "Don't you ever become one, Sammy. You're too sweet."

Sam smiled. "Thank you. I think I gotta go though. Dean sent me to the grocery store to pick up some stuff."

"Alright. Thank you for stoppin' in dear. It gets rather lonely when I'm here all by myself."

"Thank you for the lemonade," he said, trying to remember to be polite. Pamela nodded and showed him out the door.

"Don't mention it, honey. Just...be nice to that boy for me, okay? The world ain't too kind to fellas like him."

Sam frowned. But before he could ask what she meant by that, she was waving him goodbye, hurrying back inside to answer her ringing telephone. Left with that thought, Sam continued down the sidewalk and towards the grocery store on the corner. What had she meant by that? Sam found himself thinking about it the entire way to the market, as well as the entire way home.

So lost in his own thoughts, Sam found himself smacking right into somebody coming from the opposite direction, who apparently had not been paying attention either. Dropping the groceries in his hand, Sam stumbled back, realizing he had crashed right into the very boy he had just been thinking about. Lucifer looked at Sam with panicked eyes, nearly falling over himself. It took Sam a minute to realize that Lucifer was holding the hand of his younger brother, Gabriel.

"S-sorry!" Sam sputtered, trying to gather himself as quickly as he could. Lucifer's face lit up in a blush as Gabriel shrieked with laughter, the tattered hat on his head nearly tumbling right off.

"Luci you almost fell _down!_" the little boy laughed. Lucifer groaned quietly, awkwardly half-bending over to help Sam gather up his spilled grocery bags.

"Luci, you almost fell-!"

"_Gabriel,_" he snapped. The boy quieted himself.

"I'm sorry," Sam mumbled when he had finally gathered up the rest of his things. Embarrassed, he grimaced, unable to meet the boy's eyes.

"It's fine," he said, laughing a little. Sam looked up, almost surprised to hear him laugh. It was quiet, as his voice always was whenever he spoke, but Sam didn't even think a boy like Lucifer was even _capable _of laughing.

"I wasn't really watching where I was going. Gabe and I were talking about music."

"You play _good _music," Gabriel insisted. Lucifer hushed him gently, his cheeks turning red.

'Haha. That's okay. I wasn't really looking where I was going either…"

For a moment, an awkward silence descended over the two of them.

"Are you guys, uh, heading to the market?"

Lucifer nodded. "Yeah. You look like you just got back and all, but do you wanna come with us?"

Surprised by the offer, Sam didn't know what to say at first. This boy had gone from avoiding him all week, to now suddenly inviting him to walk with him and his brother. Pausing for a moment, Sam then nodded quickly, a small smile stretching across his face. Maybe Lucifer wasn't so bad after all. He felt relieved that Sam hadn't scared him off the first day that they had met.

"Sure!"

Lucifer smiled in return. "Great. That okay with you, Gabe?"

Gabriel nodded affirmatively, with all the command and authority that a four-year old could muster.

"Yeah. But only if he likes matchbox cars. I don't wanna play with _no one _who don't like matchbox cars," he said firmly.

Lucifer gave Sam an exasperated look, which made them both begin to laugh. Joining the two of them, Sam felt much more at ease around the strange boy now that his goofy little brother was around. He noticed the music-pendant necklace hanging from Lucifer's neck, just as it had the week previously.

"I never really said thank-you for finding my necklace," Lucifer said after a moment. Gabriel had, sure enough, taken a matchbox car out of his pocket, and was pretending to drive it along an invisible road in the air as they made their way to the store. Sam nodded, a little surprised that Lucifer was so relieved to have it back. Briefly, he recalled Michael having said something about it once belonging to their mother. He wondered if that had anything to do with it.

"Yeah, it was no problem," Sam replied. Lucier's hand that wasn't holding Gabriel's instinctively went to the pendant, his hand closing around it protectively.

Sam's first instinct was to ask about it, but he decided to keep his mouth shut. He had finally, possibly, been able to make a friend and didn't want to ruin it now. Gabriel was making beeping and honking noises, making the car go up and down invisible hills in the air. He charged straight for a puddle on the side of the road, and only his brother's firm hand on his shoulder stopped him from charging headlong into the mud.

"Pa's gonna be home tonight," Lucifer said firmly, yanking Gabriel back. "So don't go getting your pants all dirty, okay?" Gabriel looked at him with a worried expression, his body relaxing.

"I don't _want _Papa to come home tonight," he said quietly. Lucifer shook his head.

"Doesn't matter. Don't get yourself all scruffy, okay?" Gabriel nodded solemnly, the playfulness in his expression gone.

"Gabriel doesn't like it when our Pa is home," Lucifer explained. Sam nodded. He couldn't imagine not wanting his father to come home. Although Dean looked forward to it more than anything, Sam didn't get to see his dad much either, and liked having him home.

"My dad isn't home much either," Sam told him. "On days he doesn't work, he's usually real tired. Dean looks after me usually. But he hasn't been home much lately."

"I think I saw him yesterday," Lucifer said. "With my brother Castiel. They were walking somewhere."

Sam frowned. Pamela had said the same thing, but Dean hadn't mentioned him all week. He hadn't heard Dean mention Castiel at all in the week that they had been here. He was surprised they had become friends so quickly.

"Oh. Guess that explains it."

Lucifer nodded, growing quiet once again. Gabriel was making soft, quiet motor sounds as he held his matchbox car in his small hands, focused on the invisible road ahead of him. There was a youthful innocence that Gabriel exhibited, despite his displeasure at having his father come home that night, that was lost in Lucifer, despite him being only nine years old. Lucifer already seemed heavily burdened with some sort of weight that was hard to pick out to the casual observer, something that showed the boy had years in his eyes that went beyond just his physical age.

When they reached the grocery store, Sam watched Gabriel and Lucifer pick off the things from their list- milk, juice, and several boxes of cereal. Sam watched in amusement as Gabriel marched over the his brother with an armful of assorted candy, insisting that they buy all of it right away.

"Gabriel, go put it back."

"No."

"Gabriel-"

"I'll call the cops on you if you don't buy all this candy right now!" Gabriel threatened, which brought a laugh out of Sam.

Lucifer sighed. "Gabe, we don't have enough money," he said quietly. Gabriel looked heartbroken. Tears began gathering at the edges of his eyes, sadness dripping into his voice as he pleaded with his brother.

Sam reached into his pocket, pulling out the last 12 cents that he had, and held his hand out to the older of the two brothers.

"Here. I know it isn't much, but you can probably get him something."

Lucifer looked at Sam solemnly. "No. It's okay," he said. Gabriel was crying quietly now- not the kind of temper-tantrum crying that was common in children his age, but the kind of tears that showed true sadness in his eyes. Sam wondered when the last time the kid ever even had a Snickers bar.

"Really. Here, Gabriel, go pick out what you want."

Gabriel's eyes lit up, and suddenly he charged forward and flung his arms around Sam's middle in a tight, excited hug, nearly knocking Sam over in the middle of the aisle.

"Thank you thank you thank you! I'm gonna give you _all_ my matchbox cars. I only have two but you can have both of them!" Gratefully taking the money from Sam's hand, Gabriel charged down the aisle in search for what he could buy. Lucifer looked at Sam with gratitude, smiling a little as he watched his brother whoop and holler in excitement.

"You didn't have to do that," he said. Sam shrugged his shoulders. "Dad lays money out on the counter for us everyday before he runs off to work. I had some extra in my pocket. He gets excited real easy doesn't he?"

"Yeah. He does. He's such an actor most of the time. But I try to keep him from being home too much. Our Pa frightens him."

He didn't say anymore on the matter, and Sam didn't ask. When they left the grocery store, Gabriel with his two Snickers bars, and Lucifer with the rest of their groceries.

"Should we...do this again?" Sam asked, a small smile spreading across his face. Lucifer nodded, nudging his brother with his arm.

"Whaddya think, Gabe?" he asked. The boy nodded in approval, chewing his candy with gusto.

"Yeah! I like him." Sam laughed. He was happy making the little kid smile- and if nothing else, it seemed to make Lucifer happy too.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" Lucifer asked quietly. The question surprised Sam, but nevertheless made him smile. He was relieved that the majority of the tension between them seemed almost entirely resolved. While Lucifer still didn't seem entirely at ease around Sam- or really anywhere he went- it was better than the awkward, forced conversation from the weeks before.

"'Course!" Sam chirped happily. Lucifer nodded once, content with the arrangement. They didn't speak the rest of the way, walking in the relatively comfortable silence, only broken by the sounds of Gabriel's quiet car noises.

They said their goodbyes at the end of the cul-de-sac, Gabriel waving at him enthusiastically as their parted ways. Sam expected Dean to snap at him for taking so long, but as he set the groceries down on their tiny kitchen table, Sam couldn't find him anywhere.

"Dean!" Sam called out. Hurried footsteps came from upstairs, before Dean came hurrying down the stairs, a boy about two years or so older than him following him shyly. Sam immediately recognized the boy as Castiel, one of Lucifer's older brothers.

"Oh. Hey," Dean said quickly as he hurried into the kitchen. The older boy, following close behind, gave him a small wave.

"This is Cas," Dean said. "Lives next door." Cas smiled at Sam a little, glancing at Dean nervously. Sam waved at him.

"I should probably get going," Castiel said quickly. Much like his younger brother, he seemed nervous, a little unease at being around other people. "Michael isn't home and Lucifer and Gabe...well, you know…"

"Yeah. I'll see ya tomorrow."

"You too."

Cas waved goodbye to Sam, shutting the front door behind him. Frowning, Sam began unpacking the grocery bags.

"What's up with him?" Sam asked. Were all of the Novaks this weird? He thought he'd grow to like Lucifer, but were they all this quiet at first?

"Nothing. Why?"

"Dunno...he just seems a little odd."

"He's fine." Dean was clearly trying to avoid broaching the subject. Shrugging his shoulders, Sam helped his brother put the groceries away in the cabinets. Maybe he'd ask Lucifer about it later.

"You make friends with Cas's brother yet? That kid looks like he's ready to kill me in his sleep?"

"He's nice, Dean," his brother said patiently. "I'm going to hang out with him tomorrow. Is Cas nice?"

Dean nodded, taking a swig of milk directly out of the jug. "Yeah. He's a pretty swell guy."

Scowling at his brother, Sam made a lunge for the milk carton, trying to grab it away from Dean in disgust. "That's so gross! Quit doing that!"

Dean laughed and dodged his grab, running around the kitchen as Sam tried to seize the bottle from his grasp.

"Dude! _Cut it out!"_ But even so, Sam was laughing, landing a punch to Dean's gut when he splashed milk in his hair. The ending results were them wrestling on the ground with half the carton of milk spilled on the floor, and hurriedly cleaning it up before their father got home.

That night, Sam laid awake in bed, feeling tired even though he was unable to sleep. His window, as usual, was open to allow the night-time breeze to drift through his room. As he laid there, he realized with surprise that he could hear piano music, faintly drifting through his open window from outside just as he had a couple of weeks prior.

He ran to his open window, gazing outside to better hear the music, softly and melodically drifting through the night-time air. He hadn't heard it in weeks- since the last time he and Lucifer had spent any time together. Sam knew it had to be Lucifer playing; he heard mentions of Lucifer playing the piano on more than one occasion. But what amazed him was how...different the music was. Sam had never heard music so dark and sinister, yet so beautiful at the same time. He found that it was slowly causing him to nod off, his eyes shutting sleepily despite the fact that he had just been so wide awake.

He dragged himself away from the window, laying down on his bed once again. The music was faint, barely audible even in the quiet of his bedroom, but even so it caused his eyelids to droop and feel heavy.

Occasionally the music would change key, drifting up higher or lower. And then, slowly, it would repeat verses, and the song would start over again. Sam didn't question why Lucifer was playing so late at night, or why it didn't stop so suddenly like it had when he had played it a couple of weeks prior. Only that it made him sleepy, and that he wanted to keep listening to it over and over again. At last, Sam drifted off to sleep. But even though Sam could no longer hear it anymore, the music still continued to play, dipping and rising in key and pitch, tapering and growing in volume. It continued like this for nearly an hour, before the player himself found that the music too was making him tired, and drifted off to sleep on his piano bench.


End file.
